Question:
The J-1 is the simplest for myself and employers, because it does not
require the labour certification process. All I need to take advantage
of the J visa is proof that someone is willing to offer me a job.
However, can Green Cards be applied for whilst on a J-1? Does it make it
a lot harder because no labour certification process took place?
Answer:
J visa is the most problematic way of coming to the USA. Does your
J-visa carry a 2 year Home Residency Requirement? Find out about
J-visa at Shusterman web-site: www.shusterman.com
Labor certification is part of
the green card process, not the
H-1B process. It is a major bunch
of paperwork which requires a recruitment
process including print ads, and
the showing that there is no U.S.
worker minimally qualified and available
for the position. See http://www.americanlaw.com/laborcert.html.
The prerequisite for H-1B, labor condition application
(LCA), is a simple application which does not require a
recruitment process. See
http://www.americanlaw.com/h-1b.html.
All I need to take advantage
Yes. The green card process should not be started (filing
of labor certification application or Form I-140) any
earlier than 90 days after entry in J-1 status, to avoid
possible accusations of preconceived immigrant intent.
If your J-1 visa expires, or your passport is lost or
stolen, and you would have to get a new J-1 stamp if you
were to travel outside the U.S., you should not travel
outside the U.S. after the green card process has started.
There would be a strong risk of denial if you apply for a
J-1 visa under these circumstances.
The green card process is likely to take so long that you
will have to change to H-1B status anyway. It's O.K to
start the green card process before changing to H,
considering the above caveats.
Does it make it
IIRC, Jan, your basic problem was that you did not qualify
for H-1B status because you did not possess a bachelor's
degree or its equivalent in the field of your work.
Drew graduated from a U.S. university, so he does not face
that problem.
Also, it's relatively rare for a J-1 trainee status holder
to be subject to the 2 year HRR. Of course, Drew should
check that. Generally, the sending countries for the J-1
trainee programs tend to be developed countries, not those
who have a skills list. Government funding is usually not
involved in J-1 trainee positions, though it could be. And
J-1 trainee status is never used for graduate medical
education. And those are the only three bases for being
subject to the 2 year HRR.
I was just refering to somebody else's case. Mine is different. I had
the degree. I had the job offers. But I did not care to check the
difference between J and H visas.
And now I have a problem. And I *need* to stay but cannot.
Sylvia, I believe you have a good understanding of procedures and INS
laws. If you could please advise me on what to do (in my case):
I don't know the answer to your
question. I'll say that in general,
any further material that is sent
to INS after the filing of an application,
which is not accompanied by a copy
of an INS receipt notice, or at
least the INS control number, goes
into a black hole. You can send
the stuff but it will never join
up with the file.
If you paid the filing fee with a personal check, and your
bank returns your checks to you, you may find the INS
control number printed on the back of the check.
You will probably have to wait until INS requests that you
send the document, to get the document successfully joined
with your file.
This is what has happened so far:
We applied for hardship waiver. INS sent us a receipt notice. We had
not sent all the IAP66s issued. After a while they asked for more
clarification to our statement and the missing IAP66. We sent those
documents too.
It is after that, that we found out that we had needed to send the
receipt from Dept. of State along with our application.
So if we send it to INS now along with our reciept number, will they
accept it? Or will they reject the entire application!? Does this
delay the case a lot?
